Except for David Garrard mysteriously spiking the ball on a third down at the Broncos 1-yard line late in the first half Sunday, the Jaguars quarterback played a nearly flawless game.
Those were the sentiments of Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio, who takes responsibility for the unnecessary spike and credits his run-and-gun quarterback for quietly spearheading the Jaguars’ 23-14 victory at Invesco Field at Mile High.
Garrard wasn’t flashy, just efficient. The former East Carolina star produced only 154 yards passing, but he was Jacksonville’s second-leading rusher with 52 yards on 12 carries. He didn’t throw an interception and he finished with a passer rating of 109.2.
“I would call it close to a complete game,” Del Rio said of Garrard’s performance, which helped the Jaguars to nearly a 2-to-1 advantage in time-of-possession and first downs. “It makes you proud as a coach to work with a young man like that. He’s doing a nice job. There’s a lot of football ahead of us and a lot of work to be done, but certainly he’s gotten off to a nice start.”
Garrard, who shared the Jaguars’ QB duties with Byron Leftwich last season, has passed for three touchdowns this season and has not thrown an interception. His rating was 101.8 coming into Sunday.
“From Day 1, I’ve always said this is the perfect opportunity for me,” said Garrard, who became a father last Monday. “Being six years in the league, (having) started 10 games last year, (seven) games the year before that, has really prepared me for this time, and translated to now, and really showcasing my abilities.”
The Jaguars (2-1) enjoyed a first-half time-of-possession advantage of 20:55 to 9:05, thanks to converting on 7-of-10 third downs. They also owned the ball for more than 10 minutes in the fourth quarter when the Broncos were trying to rally from a 20-7 deficit.
Del Rio said his team’s most important drive was its second of the game, when the Jags went 80 yards in 18 plays to go ahead 7-0.
“That was the key, when our offense was able to take the ball and go 18 plays, (use) almost 12 minutes of the clock, and punch it in for a score,” Del Rio said. “That was a big statement, and set the tone for the day for us.”
So what about that spike, which forced the Jags to settle for a field goal and a 17-7 lead at halftime?
Del Rio wouldn’t explain why he told Garrard to spike the ball on third down at the Denver 1 with 13 seconds remaining, even though the clock wasn’t running and the Jaguars had a timeout available. Garrard just did what he was told.
“Very, very weird situation,” Garrard said. “The coaches were yelling to me, ‘Spike the ball, spike the ball!’ And I kept thinking to myself, ‘Why are they telling me to spike the ball?”‘
Staff writer Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-954-1357 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
